Greece: EU countries capable of sabotaging migration deal with Turkey

The migration deal between the European Union and Turkey could be endangered by EU member countries, said Greek migration minister Ioannis Mouzalas Thursday.

"The pact could be cancelled by Turkey, but it can also be sabotaged by EU countries," Mouzalas said in an interview with the Greek television station Skai.

Adopted in March, the migration deal allows the European Union to send Syrian asylum seekers from Greek islands back to Turkey, as part of a bid to undercut migrant smuggling networks.

For every Syrian that Turkey takes back from Greece, they are allowed to send another Syrian to the EU legally.

In the interview, Mouzalas referred to EU countries that refuse to accept and redistribute refugees, mentioning directly Czech President Milos Zeman, who on Tuesday called on the Czech parliament to ignore EU quotas and refuse to take refugees.

Mouzalas estimated that approximately 40,000 refugees in Greece could be resettled, but that it is a work in progress and takes time.

There are currently around 60,000 refugees and migrants waiting in Greece.

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